


In The Night Before

by jessebee



Series: Moments Between (ROTJ) [3]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Hidden truths, M/M, Missing Scene, Trust, Waiting, Worry, pre-slash(a little less squinting this time)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-01
Updated: 2017-02-01
Packaged: 2018-09-21 05:58:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9534800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jessebee/pseuds/jessebee
Summary: Han and Leia talk the night before the Battle of Endor.  Han finds out that Luke has left, and realizes just what it is he might lose.(Missing scene for RETURN OF THE JEDI)





	

 

 

Han held her for hours, it felt like, there in the cool darkness. Leia's breath and shoulders trembled against his chest, until finally the sobs she couldn't or would not fully let loose eased up. Which was good, because Han's legs hurt – hells, between the lingering affects of the hibernation and getting dropped flat on his back today, _**all**_ of him ached – and it was way past time to find them both a seat somewhere.

“C'mon,” Han murmured into the top of her head, and led her gently across the walkway to where he'd spotted a bench-type thing earlier. He plopped them down on the rough wooden seat and wrapped both arms around her again. Leia leaned into him, the wealth of her hair hiding her face.

She felt so tiny against him.

Which she was, of course, but she rarely ever seemed like it – she was so much _larger_ than her body that Han regularly forgot that she didn't actually even reach the top of his shoulder.

But right now she felt like someone that he wanted to protect, that he _needed_ to protect, never-mind that Leia needed protection about as much as Chewie did. Or Luke, for that matter.

Luke.

Sweet suns, what was he gonna do about Luke?

They were so close now, Luke and Leia, with six months of time between them that Han would never ever get and fuck if he knew which one of them he was more jealous of –

Han squeezed his eyes shut. Hard. “Better now?” he asked, quiet and maybe a little desperate.

Leia swallowed. “I'm going to have to be soon, aren't I,” she whispered back.

“Take all the time you want, sweetheart,” Han said, holding on. Because she'd asked him to, she'd actually asked him to, and he'd hold her until she asked him to stop and maybe after that too, dammit.

Her hair smelled like that Alderaani perfume he always forgot the name of, flowers and snow and a hint like stone.

Finally Leia drew a deep, deep breath that only shuddered a little bit and sat up straighter, and the air drifted chill against Han's side where she no longer pressed against him. She didn't move out from under his arm, though.

“Talk to me,” Han murmured, because frankly she was making him nervous. “Okay, you can't tell me what it is, but, talk to me, yeah? I mean – “

“I know what you mean, hotshot,” Leia said, and her voice was thick but there was a glimmer of her usual tone in it, which made Han a little less nervous. She drew another deep breath and let it out, and laced her fingers together in her lap. Han’d never seen her do that before. “He's gone.”

“Gone.” Han's forehead wrinkled, but it was only a moment before the meaning hit like a rock to the head. “Whadaya mean, 'gone'? Luke? Gone where?”

“I don't know.” But Leia's head came up and she looked to the night sky, and Han followed her gaze. There, off the left, where the unfinished Death Star shone like a malignant, jagged-edged moon.

“You're saying –what?” Han looked back at her, incredulous; noted absently how that cold light picked out a damp track on her face. _“There?”_

“ _I don't know,”_ Leia repeated, her whisper harsh, but something in her expression gave Han the eerie feeling that yes, in fact, she _did_ know. “ Luke said it again, that Vader knew he was here, that he was endangering us, the mission, by being here.” She closed her eyes. “So Luke went to face him. Alone.”

 _But_ _I just got him back._

F or a long moment, Han couldn't breathe. “He – he can't do that!”

Which sparked a bitter twist of smile to Leia's mouth because of course she knew, like Han knew, like _everybody_ knew that  the second-best way to get Luke to do something was to tell him he couldn't do it. “Of course he can. He already has.”

“That – little – “ Han's muscles bunched and propelled him up and across the walkway almost involuntarily, because it was either move or hit something.  He forced himself to a stop against the bole of the big tree there, digging his fingers into the rough bark. Chewie kriffin' loved these things, even though they were tiny compared to the _w_ _roshyr_ on Kashyyyk. “ You shoulda stopped him,” Han gritted out.

Behind him, Leia snorted. “I tried to talk him out of it, but – ”

Han whirled. “Well, obviously not hard enough!”

“What should I have done?” Leia jerked to her feet and glared at him, fire in her eyes. “Hold him at gunpoint?!”

Han threw out his hands. “That might've worked, yeah!” he snapped back because a fight was good, just what he needed –

But Leia's face creased up and she wrapped her arms around herself  abruptly, her head going down, and it was like being flung with no warning into the cold ocean.  W hat in the name of Sith was he  _doing?_ “ Hells. Ah, hells,  Leia, I'm sorry. I didn't – ”

She looked  up at him again and her face did something complicated, her mouth unsteady.  She shook her head.  “It's how we communicate, isn't it?” And held out her hand to him.

They ended up in another huddle on the bench, Leia tucked  once more against his side and Han muttering  things into her glorious hair, barely listening to himself, until she shushed him with a little slap on the arm. “ You make me crazy, Han Solo.”

“Me!” Han protested, glad to hear her sounding more normal. Still, he knew a diversion when one bit him. “There's more going on, isn't there, that you can't tell me.”

Leia sighed. “ Han – ”

“Nah, I get it. And stampeding banthas couldn't divert Luke when he's locked on course, and I shouldn't've thrown that at you. I just – I wanna protect you,” he confessed softly. “Both of you.”

“We don't need protection.” Leia rubbed her face against his shirt.

“Of course you don't; doesn't stop me wanting to.” Han's turn to sigh. “I'm gonna kick his ass for this, so he'd better come back and give me the chance.”

“He will.” But her voice wasn't quite as steady as her words.

Han held her closer, and squinted up at that ominous blob of Empire-made light.  _You'd better, Luke._ _You'd damn-well better._

 

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End file.
